


what your best friend knows

by archaeocyaths



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, M/M, Moving In Together, lee seokmin | dk is the most supportive friend and boyfriend you will ever know, the lightest of pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:48:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25211923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/archaeocyaths/pseuds/archaeocyaths
Summary: Soonyoung and Mingyu have always had a different, more intense kind of friendship—an immediate bond that grew over time until they became inseparable. Now, a week into living together, Mingyu realizes that there might have been something more all along.Or, Lee Seokmin is the most supportive friend Mingyu has, and he should get a medal for his patience.
Relationships: Kim Mingyu/Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi, Lee Seokmin | DK/Xu Ming Hao | The8
Comments: 37
Kudos: 172





	what your best friend knows

**Author's Note:**

> title from [all time low](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn84dcbXVLY), and fic for [Caleigh](https://twitter.com/mingyushibe) (go look at her amazing art!)
> 
> [moodboard](https://twitter.com/kiiimline/status/1282114923661864960)

Mingyu is startled awake by the sound of the front door slamming, the only bad habit of Soonyoung's that actually irritates him. Despite the way that it happens every morning, it’s only been a week since they’ve moved in together and Mingyu is still learning to sleep through it. He wouldn't be able to anyway, not with the way Soonyoung comes bounding into his room, bright and sweaty and not even bothering to knock.

"Yah, take your shoes off," Mingyu groans, shielding his eyes from the affront of neon running clothes. He wonders idly if his hand-eye coordination is good enough to make it worth the effort of throwing something. It might be worth sacrificing his alarm clock, considering Soonyoung basically stole its job.

"You sound like my mother," Soonyoung chirps, but steps back into the hallway obediently, and Mingyu closes his eyes as he hears the telltale _thunks_ that are Soonyoung's shoes landing by the doorway. "Anyway, you need to get up! My call time is at five, and I want to finish setting up the living room before I go."

Mingyu heaves a dramatic sigh and sits up, squinting over at Soonyoung. "What time is it, even?"

"Just past seven."

"Soonie," Mingyu starts slowly, able to tell that Soonyoung is basically vibrating with nervous energy now that he has both eyes fully open. "You know I finished my final at one-thirty in the morning, right?"

"Oh," Soonyoung says quietly, pausing for a moment before kick-starting back up again. "Well, no, I fell asleep at ten. How was I supposed to know?"

"I texted you to not wake me up," Mingyu sighs, but remembers from three years of friendship just as Soonyoung says,

"You know I don't check my phone on show days! It's bad luck!"

Luckily, Soonyoung isn't letting his nerves turn into irritation like they sometimes do, and he perches on the bed (over the comforter, he knows how Mingyu gets) to pet his hand through Mingyu's hair. "I'm sorry," he says softly. "I can let you get back to sleep, if you want?"

Mingyu hums, leaning into the touch, and he meets Soonyoung's soft, contented smile with one of his own. "Nah, I'm awake now," he decides. "Now go shower and I'll make your protein shake. You smell bad."

"How did I get lucky enough to move in with you?" Soonyoung marvels, his nose scrunching as he continues to ruffle Mingyu's hair.

"Well," Mingyu starts, pushing Soonyoung off of the bed so he can get up, "I'm better than that shitty animation student who kept joking that you were choreographing the next PSY song every time you danced to k-pop."

Soonyoung laughs, but groans as he walks out into the hallway towards the bathroom. "Yeah, that might have something to do with it," he says over his shoulder, and Mingyu's left smiling at the doorway.

True to his word, Mingyu is in the kitchen breaking off pieces of a banana into the blender, albeit still in his pajamas, when he hears the shower shut off. The kitchen was the first room they had finished unpacking, or at least that's what Mingyu tells himself as he ignores the last few boxes on the counter. They're just serving platters and baking tins anyway, nothing either of them use regularly, but Mingyu's mother insisted that they take them, and he wasn’t in a position to argue.

By the time Soonyoung is dressed and has made his way into the kitchen, Mingyu has two glasses out and is portioning the shake into them, crouched down to be at eye-level as he pours. Soonyoung laughs at his precision, and Mingyu straightens up, smiling smugly.

"Guess who found the protein powder on the first try?" he gloats, handing Soonyoung a glass.

"You've really settled in," Soonyoung says dryly, but he's grinning along. “It’s not just an apartment anymore. Now it’s a home.”

"Well, it's no home without you, _jagiya,_ " Mingyu says, laying it on thick to make it sound more comical than he really means. 

"Wow, maybe we are the old married couple Chan thinks we are," Soonyoung marvels.

He’s clearly joking, but Mingyu still feels his heart stutter as he imagines married life; waking up together every morning, alternating Chuseoks and Thanksgivings between their families, slow dancing in the kitchen at night, eventually getting a real place with enough space to raise a dog or maybe a kid. The thoughts fly through his mind, already familiar that they take no effort to produce, and he barely loses a moment. Thankfully, Soonyoung doesn't seem to notice, taking a large gulp of the shake and seeming a little out of it himself.

"He just says that because we bicker too much," Mingyu finally says as he makes some space between them, moving to the fridge to look for anything resembling breakfast food. He pauses there. "Huh. Maybe he has a point."

Soonyoung just laughs and comes up behind him, not a fan of letting them stay separate for long, and wraps his arms around Mingyu's waist as he peeks over his shoulder. "Exactly. You’re stuck with me.”

“Good,” Mingyu says honestly, and Soonyoung hums, content. They stand there together until Mingyu realizes how long they’ve been letting the cool air out of the fridge, and he asks Soonyoung what he wants for breakfast.

By the time they finish eating, Soonyoung's nervous energy is back at full strength, and he channels it into unpacking. They still have a lot to unbox, and now that he’s caffeinated, Mingyu can see why Soonyoung woke him up so early. Still, he will never stop cursing whichever group of landlords decided that every lease within five miles of their university should coincide with finals week. 

Somehow, despite how vocal Soonyoung is and how stubborn Mingyu can get, they only argue for twenty minutes about couch placement. That’s not bad, considering how long they’ve bickered over less important matters. They work well together. It’s the product of three years of learning how to navigate each other, to the point where Soonyoung catches the plant Mingyu drops before Mingyu even realizes it’s tipping out of his hands. They make fast progress, and Mingyu eventually finds himself quietly screwing the shelves of a bookcase into their frame as Soonyoung sits in the center of the room breaking down cardboard boxes. 

They've fallen into a comfortable silence until Soonyoung says, so softly Mingyu almost misses it, "What if I forget my routine?"

Mingyu looks over at Soonyoung, who's staring unseeingly at the sheets of flat cardboard on the ground in front of him. "If you what?"

"What if I get out there on stage, and the audience is staring at me, and I'm all alone, and the music starts and I forget my routine?"

"Soonie," Mingyu says gently, setting down the screwdriver and scooting over to Soonyoung. He wraps his arms around Soonyoung’s shoulders and pulls until his back is resting against Mingyu's chest. Soonyoung is tense against him, though he presses back further to meet Mingyu at every point of contact and brings his hands up to grasp at Mingyu's wrists.

" _Hyung,_ " Mingyu adds gently, the term less familiar in his mouth but a source of comfort to them both. "You've been practicing for months. You practiced it last night, even though you're going to do a run-through of it today. I'm pretty sure you could do it in your sleep. Are you really worried about that?"

Soonyoung is quiet, and Mingyu knows that's not it. He hooks his chin over Soonyoung's shoulder, tilting his head so he can look up at Soonyoung's face. His perfectly slanted cheekbones, the curve of his nose, his doe eyes. Mingyu knows he's attracted to Soonyoung—understands the fact intellectually, feels it in his bones—but in moments like these, he still feels his breath stolen by how beautiful Soonyoung is.

"I think," Mingyu says gently, when the silence stretches on too long, "you're the best dancer this school has seen in years, a hard worker, and an amazing choreographer. I know this is a big show for you. It's your senior showcase, of course you're nervous. Hell, I’d be worried if you weren’t."

Soonyoung chuckles half-heartedly, and Mingyu presses a small kiss to the nape of his neck, right at the edge of his hairline. He knows that Soonyoung won't question it, not with the way they always trade casual intimacies like hand-holding, even kissing (everywhere but the face, as Mingyu is acutely aware). They’ve been cuddling during movie nights long before the idea of moving in together came up. It’s a natural part of their friendship, and Mingyu stays quiet, his head resting on Soonyoung’s shoulder. This, too, is normal for them; Soonyoung has to work through the tangles in his brain to express himself, and Mingyu is always willing to wait as long as it takes.

"I just don't wanna make an idiot out of myself in front of everyone," Soonyoung finally says, sounding a little choked up. "I mean, I feel like—like if I mess this up, then what the hell was the point of the past four years?"

Mingyu can almost pinpoint the fault line in his heart that cracks open at his words, and he can't help but press another kiss, two, three at the junction of Soonyoung's shoulder and neck. "The point is, you've worked so hard and come so far," he says, becoming more passionate as he speaks. "I mean, I feel like it's worth mentioning that you're going to be perfect, and everyone else is going to be knocked onto their asses. But even if some cosmic event changes that, you're still going to be the best dancer on that stage, and you deserve to show off all your hard work. You're going to keep being an amazing dancer no matter what happens. And I'll be there to cheer you on the whole time."

Soonyoung is silent as he slumps down, sinking until his head is resting against Mingyu’s chest. "You’re too good to me," he whines, sniffing possibly from tears or just for dramatic effect.

"I know," Mingyu says lightly, grinning. "Do you feel better?"

" _Yes,_ " Soonyoung all but wails, pulling his knees up and truly curling in on himself. "How am I even supposed to respond to that?"

"Well, you could pay for my half of rent next month," Mingyu says lightly, and neatly dodges the elbow Soonyoung sends back to him.

"Or," he adds gently. "You could kick ass tonight and prove just how right I am."

Soonyoung hums like he's considering it. "Deal."

Mingyu grins and places a final kiss on the top of Soonyoung’s head before pulling himself away to keep working. He doesn't want to make Soonyoung uncomfortable by overstepping, even as Soonyoung himself acts clingier in the few hours left before he leaves for his call time. Isolated, the moments aren’t much; a hand trailing along Mingyu's shoulders as he passes by, a kiss to the top of his head, calling him _honey._ But together, as is so often the case, the impact of Soonyoung’s actions is larger than the sum of its parts. 

Nothing about the way they act is any different, so Mingyu isn’t sure why today of all days makes his heart act like he’s running a marathon, but he doesn’t really question it. He just keeps working until there’s only half an hour until Soonyoung’s call time and the living room is messy, but complete.

As they stand together to admire the finished bookshelf, Soonyoung wraps his arms around Mingyu's waist to lean into him. Mingyu doesn't even have to think about it as his arm comes up to sling around Soonyoung's shoulders. They’re drawn together like they always are, magnets that can’t help but stick close.

Soonyoung leans up to press a kiss to Mingyu's cheek, and it’s like something slots into place. The proximity of their faces feels like an extension of how they've always been. Mingyu goes cross-eyed for a moment when he looks down at Soonyoung, who still hasn't dropped off of his tiptoes, hesitant or maybe expectant. The moment's drawn out, Mingyu too caught up in it to actually do anything rash like make a joke and pull away or kiss him, but Soonyoung makes the choice for them. He lowers himself back onto flat feet, effectively dispersing the thick air that had been forming between them.

"Good job with the bookshelf," he says, tucking his head against Mingyu's shoulder like there's a home for him there, and maybe there is. "It looks really good against that wall."

"Thanks," Mingyu replies, and his voice is soft, trying to preserve the moment. "I'm glad we put the couch there, you were right."

Soonyoung just hums in acknowledgement, sighs. "I feel better about tonight, too."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I mean, no matter what, you'll be there, right?" Soonyoung asks, though it's a rhetorical question. He looks up at Mingyu, observing for a moment before adding, "And even if I crash and burn, at least I'll be coming back here at the end of the night."

Mingyu's heart fills. "Yeah. Our little home's pretty nice, huh?"

"Yeah, that too," Soonyoung says, and pulls away reluctantly. "I need to go, but I'll see you after the show, right?"

"Right," Mingyu says, the word echoing in his mouth. He stays standing where he is as Soonyoung buzzes around, stopping in his room for his tote bag and the kitchen for his water bottle before blowing a kiss to Mingyu as he heads towards the door. 

The door slams in his wake, and Mingyu is left wondering where else Soonyoung could have meant.

Mingyu spends the late afternoon in a daze, mindlessly cleaning up, every interaction between him and Soonyoung playing over and over in his head like a skipping record. He thinks back to the beginning of their friendship, Soonyoung automatically overwhelming freshman-year Mingyu in the most exciting way possible, asking him to go grab lunch or coffee or come hang out with his friends. They had bonded over being first-gen, and Soonyoung would always make the long trek to the Asian dining hall whenever Mingyu got homesick. 

Mingyu remembers his first semester of sophomore year as he gets showered and dressed, when he would get drunk and lie on the carpet of Wonwoo’s apartment every weekend. Soonyoung was always there to prop his head up with a thigh and help him drink some water, and that was when Mingyu realized that his feelings weren’t strictly platonic. He vaguely remembers the way Soonyoung’s hand would run affectionately through his hair, the absurdity of their whispered conversations, the way that the only thing he cared about was making Soonyoung smile.

As he catches the bus to campus, he keeps thinking about Soonyoung, thinking of the patterns they built together. Their affection for each other was just different than the way they were with their other friends; even as their friend group morphed and grew, it had always been Soonyoung-and-Mingyu. Sometimes it’s embarrassing, the way their friends will invite one and know that the other will follow, but that's just how they work—it's how they've always been, Mingyu realizes. He’s been well aware of his feelings for Soonyoung, had tended to them softly and tried to suppress them to keep things from getting out of hand. But the more he thinks about it, the more he realizes that things had kind of always felt out of hand anyway. 

He hadn't meant to let himself get so caught up in Soonyoung, but Soonyoung had been getting just as caught up in return.

The thoughts spin around in Mingyu's head like clothes in a dryer, getting jumbled up and twisted into an idea he can hardly let himself put into words. Still, he can't help but let them spill out once he finds Seokmin in the lobby.

"I'm in love with Soonyoung," he says in lieu of a proper greeting, words all rushing out at once.

Seokmin, patient as always, raises an eyebrow. "Yes, I know. You talk about it all the time."

"Yeah, but," Mingyu says desperately, his anxiety building in his throat. "But I think he might love me back."

Seokmin's face goes carefully blank. He looks Mingyu up and down, perhaps noticing for the first time how heavily he's breathing, how rumpled his collar is, the way he's gripping a bouquet of flowers—tiger lilies, of course—like a lifeline. 

"This is... news to you," Seokmin finally says slowly, like Mingyu's something fragile. "This is a new realization. You are realizing this for the first time."

"Yes," Mingyu stresses as the house lights flicker, and he fumbles in his suit jacket to get his wallet and retrieve the ticket that's been stored safely inside of it for weeks. "Yes, I'm just realizing it, what—what the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

Seokmin’s blank expression disappears and he bursts into laughter, throwing his head and torso back and drawing attention to them in a way Mingyu doesn't really appreciate. "It means you've finally caught up to the rest of us," he says once he's regained himself. "Were you seriously too busy being in love with him to realize he loves you back?"

Once he hears the words spoken aloud, so easily that they sound like fact, Mingyu knows it’s true. It feels like confirmation that he hasn't been deluding himself the entire afternoon, that maybe he and Soonyoung have been orbiting closer and closer and now is finally when their two planets collide.

"Yeah, I think so," Mingyu says weakly, the panic draining out of him all at once, and he smiles. "I think that's exactly it. Wow."

Seokmin rolls his eyes, but his face is fond. "Great work, Sherlock. But we need to get inside before the doors close. If Minghao doesn’t kill you for making us miss the first half, I will.”

"Okay," Mingyu says hollowly, in a daze for the second time today. He lets Seokmin scoff and guide him to their seats just as the house lights start to dim.

Each senior’s showcase is good; Soonyoung isn't until after intermission, but Mingyu tries his best to pay attention to each performer, and cheers along with Seokmin before Minghao goes on stage. He even sneaks a picture (no flash, of course) of Seokmin crying during the applause. He knows Minghao will appreciate it, maybe even laugh over how teary Seokmin gets at every performance, even as a backup dancer to a senior's modern dance piece.

The lights come up for intermission, and Mingyu takes the time to stretch his legs in the lobby. His mind works in circles, no longer occupied by a performance, until it hones in on a new source of anxiety. 

"Do you think it's a bad idea to date my roommate?" he asks suddenly, startling Seokmin, who's walking up to him with two packs of Skittles in hand.

"Depends," Seokmin says, handing one pack to Mingyu and tearing open his own. "Why would it be a bad idea?"

"Well, for one thing, if we have a horrible messy breakup, we're both signed onto the lease for a year."

Seokmin hums thoughtfully, although it might be less thoughtful and more space-filling as he chews the candy in his mouth. "Leases can be broken, if things get really bad," he says once he's swallowed. "But from what I know of the two of you as people, and the two of you as a unit, I don't think that's going to happen. Even if you end up not working out—which, for the record, sounds ridiculous considering you guys are basically already dating—you're still best friends, and I don't think a breakup can get in the way of that."

Mingyu nods slowly, taking in the words, and pauses as he catches up. "Already dating?" he asks, his voice a little higher-pitched than normal.

Seokmin rolls his eyes. "Yeah, dude. You guys hold hands all the time. You call each other _yeobo_ and _jagiya—_ "

"As a joke," Mingyu interjects weakly, but Seokmin ignores him, undeterred.

"Soonyoung only looked for jobs near the university so you two could live together. You have special movie nights that the rest of us can't join. You're the only one of our friends here on opening night besides me, and I'm here to support my boyfriend. Draw your own conclusions, but yeah, you're basically already dating."

Mingyu is silent, a little overwhelmed. "Oh," he says finally, and Seokmin snorts.

"Yeah, _oh._ Which is why I think it's fine if you two start officially dating while you're living together. Plus," Seokmin adds, grinning as he pours out a handful of candy into his palm. "No walk of shame in the morning."

Mingyu's eyes bug out of his head, and he can feel how hot his ears are getting even as Seokmin cackles and tosses the Skittles into his mouth. He starts to reply but gets interrupted by the lights flickering, and they instead start moving with the crowd back to their seats for the second half.

Soonyoung's performance is second to last, and Mingyu can barely focus on the other dancers, too caught up in anticipation. As he waits, Mingyu thinks about how hard Soonyoung has worked, how many late nights and tears have gone into this performance, the culmination of months of practice and years of honing his skills. Tonight is about Soonyoung, not about himself, Mingyu decides, and resolves to somehow contain his feelings until later. They'll celebrate Soonyoung tonight, and Mingyu can wait until tomorrow.

He applauds mindlessly with the rest of the audience, still caught in his head until Seokmin leans over and whispers "You ready?"

It turns out Mingyu is not, in fact, ready. Soonyoung fills the stage, captivating the entire audience the moment the music starts, and Mingyu is no exception. He doesn’t move like he’s performing; instead, it seems like he’s just expressing an extension of himself. Soonyoung dances like he is at once subject to the movement of his body and the master of it, like the music is responding to him, like he is all alone and having a conversation with each member of the audience. 

Mingyu is used to watching him dance, recognizes familiar moves from when Soonyoung would practice in their empty living room, has attended every recital only for him, but tears still prick at the edges of his eyes. He is overwhelmed with the way he loves the man on stage, with the tentative knowledge that Soonyoung loves him too, and suddenly Seokmin's tears when he was watching Minghao make a lot more sense.

When the music stops, Soonyoung stops with it, standing straight in the center of the stage, the only sign of exertion the steady rise-and-fall of his chest. As everyone around him bursts into applause Mingyu forces his arms to follow suit, not looking away from Soonyoung even as Seokmin leans in to say something. Soonyoung's eyes scan the audience, searching, and he stops when he finds Mingyu. 

Mingyu feels the full force of every cliche, the weight of every song or movie that has talked about this moment—the way everyone else simply ceases to exist, falling into Mingyu's peripheral vision and the dull roar of applause. He can feel a goofy smile erupt onto his face but all he can do is shake his head, just slightly, just enough to show how awestruck he is. Soonyoung smiles back, cheeks puffed, and they watch each other for another blissful moment until Soonyoung blinks away, makes his bows, and walks offstage.

"He's amazing," Seokmin murmurs into Mingyu's ear as the next (and mercifully last) performer takes her place. Mingyu can only nod.

The last performance seems to take an eternity, but it's nothing compared to the time it takes for Mingyu to make his way out of the theater and back into the lobby, Seokmin by his side. They maneuver their way through the crowd to the door the dancers use, find a good vantage point to watch it, and wait. It'll take a while for Soonyoung to change and gather his belongings, but Mingyu is used to it after three years. The crowd starts to thin out after several minutes, and he shifts anxiously, in anticipation rather than impatience.

As dancers start to trickle out of the doorway, Mingyu’s heart jumps into his throat, the anticipation building with each face that isn’t Soonyoung’s. Minghao walks out and Seokmin runs to meet him, grabbing him around the waist and pressing sweet, proud kisses all over his face. Mingyu can hear the high peals of Minghao's laughter, and walks up to join them.

"You were so good!" Mingyu exclaims, grinning widely. "I got a great picture of Seokmin looking at you at the end. He's crying."

Minghao's eyes light up. "I’m so happy you made it! Please send me that picture. I can add it to my Pinterest board."

"Gyu, why do you always—wait, Pinterest board?" Seokmin asks, looking between them. "You put them on a Pinterest board?"

"That's my business," Minghao starts, but his voice fades away as Mingyu looks up and sees Soonyoung walk out, looking over the crowd with the same searching gaze as when he was onstage.

Mingyu pulls away, dodges a few people walking by, and makes a beeline to Soonyoung. Soounyoung turns, their eyes meet, and they both break out into identical giant grins as they rush for each other.

"You were amazing," Mingyu says earnestly when they meet, keeping the bouquet in one hand as Soonyoung throws his arms around Mingyu's neck and pulls him into a hug. "You were so good, I couldn't keep my eyes off of you."

"Thank you," Soonyoung says, smiling as he leans back just far enough for his eyes to look over Mingyu's face. "I don't even remember it, I think I just blacked out from the nerves."

"You didn't even look nervous," Mingyu assures him. "You were perfect."

"I know. I saw you," Soonyoung says, as if they weren't both already aware. "That's how I know I didn't mess up."

"Oh, and the rest of the cheering audience didn't tip you off?" 

Soonyoung shakes his head. "I don't care about what any of them think. Only you."

"Oh." The air is punched out of Mingyu’s chest, and he clutches Soonyoung closer, not even knowing what to say. "Soonyoung—"

"Mingyu," Soonyoung interrupts. And then Soonyoung is pulling Mingyu down with the arms looped around his neck, and leaning up to meet him, and kissing him.

Mingyu is pretty sure his brain shorts out, and he only has enough presence of mind to make sure he doesn't drop the bouquet as he kisses back, meeting Soonyoung's enthusiasm with more than enough of his own. He's unable to keep the smile off of his face, but that's okay, because when Soonyoung pulls back, he's grinning too.

"Were you going to say something?" he asks cheerfully, a rhetorical question that Mingyu shakes his head _no_ to anyway. "Good."

This time, Mingyu leans down further to kiss him, and Soonyoung hums appreciatively into it even as their teeth clash because neither of them can stop smiling. He pulls back to laugh, and Mingyu straightens up. The rest of the world fills back in around them, and Mingyu is reminded that they are in a public place and can't just make out until the end of time, however much he would like to.

"Oh!" Mingyu remembers with a start. "I got you flowers. Tiger lilies." He lets go of Soonyoung only to present the bouquet to him, the flowers arranged artfully within greenery and baby's breath. Soonyoung takes the bundle, mouth agape, and looks up from the flowers to Mingyu.

"They're beautiful," he says softly. "Thank you, Gyu." He leans up and presses one final, quick kiss to Mingyu's lips. "Should we go yell at Seokmin and Minghao for staring at us?"

Mingyu whips his head over to where the two are standing, not even trying to hide their grins. "Yes," he says firmly. "We should very much do that."

Soonyoung slips his hand into Mingyu's, a gesture so familiar and so new all at once. Mingyu squeezes his hand, a little spark traveling up his spine, and revels in the way that nothing about this feels unfamiliar; even as something full of potential and love takes shape between them, it's not really new. It feels like home, the same way Soonyoung always has.

"Lead the way," Soonyoung says, and Mingyu happily does just that.

——

"Wait, you really thought we were already—" Mingyu starts, outraged, face a little pink. Next to him, Soonyoung is burying his laughter into Mingyu's shoulder, keeping him trapped on the couch.

"What was I supposed to think?" Seungkwan retaliates from the other side of the living room as everyone around them looks on, entertained. "You guys are grosser in public than Vernon and I!"

"Okay, at least I don't call him lovebug," Soonyoung interjects, and Vernon colors spectacularly, burying his face in his drink.

"Not in public," Seungkwan says, raising his eyebrows, and at Soonyoung's look of betrayal, everyone dissolves into laughter.

The housewarming party is going well, other than the amount of times Seokmin's told the story of Mingyu at the senior showcase; his ears can only get so red before they're bound to fall off. There aren't any more boxes to unpack, Wonwoo brought a case of beer, and all of their closest friends somehow fit into the apartment. As smaller conversations pick up, everyone's attention turns away from them. Soonyoung tilts his head up and, after a moment of just looking, gives Mingyu a gentle kiss.

"Oh, hello," Mingyu says, pleasantly surprised. "Are you trying to soften me up so I'll get you another drink?"

"No," Soonyoung says, but then he hesitates. "Now that you mention it, though."

Mingyu sighs dramatically and makes to get up, but Soonyoung laughs and pulls him back in, keeping him close.

"So that was just because I'm the best roommate ever?" Mingyu asks, playful.

"No," Soonyoung says, sounding uncharacteristically soft. "I'm just glad I'm here." 

Mingyu smiles, pressing a kiss to his forehead before looking around at their apartment, the open floor plan letting him see everyone at once. Most of their friends are gathered in the living room, assembled in chairs or on the carpet, but some people are off in the kitchen refilling their drinks or caught up in conversation. "Yeah," he agrees. "We've got a pretty good home here, huh?"

"Yeah," Soonyoung says, and laughs just once to himself. "But I meant here, like, with you."

"Oh," Mingyu says. He blinks down at Soonyoung, too overwhelmed with the feeling in his chest to say anything more.

" _Oh,_ " Soonyoung echoes, teasing. "Dummy."

"Your dummy," Mingyu corrects, ignoring the face Soonyoung makes in favor of leaning in to kiss him again. When he pulls back, Soonyoung's face is smoothed out in bliss, and he keeps his eyes closed for another moment.

"Now," he starts, blinking them open and looking up at Mingyu hopefully. "About getting me that drink..."

Soonyoung's laughter follows Mingyu all the way to the kitchen. As he goes, he thinks of the conversation he and Seokmin had at intermission, and can’t imagine ever thinking that this could have gone wrong.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you to [Carina](https://archiveofourown.org/users/infrequency/pseuds/infrequency) as always for the beta and making the moodboard!
> 
> drop a kudos and/or a comment if you enjoyed— thanks for reading!
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/kiiimline) [cc](https://curiouscat.me/kiiimline)


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